


magic all around you

by sansapotter



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: F/M, Morning After, One Night Stands, Second Chances
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-18
Updated: 2016-03-22
Packaged: 2018-05-27 11:56:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,516
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6283528
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sansapotter/pseuds/sansapotter
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She didn't expect to see him ever again, certainly not so soon.</p><p>written for <a href="http://valar-morekinks.livejournal.com/815.html#comments">valar_morekinks round 2</a></p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> for the valar_morekinks prompt: Sansa has a one night stand with a stranger and has to rush out in the morning in order to make brunch with her friend Dany and her nephew. It' s a bit awkward once Jon shows up.

The sun wasn’t usually so bright in her room, her sheets usually felt softer too. The man twined around her was handsome, the sort of rugged way men in the North were. His lashes fanned dark over his skin, where they fluttered in his sleep. She could still feel the burn of his beard against her cheeks, and growing warm she realizes she could feel it between her thighs too. He stirred against her, back arching from the mattress in a stretch. Grey eyes opened lazily, and his thumb moved against her shoulder. “Morning,” 

Shyness crept over her when she felt his bare legs stretch against hers. His lips brushed against her forehead, “I never do this sort of thing,” she murmured into his clavicle. The hand that wrapped around her drew a light course down her back, gentle and sweet. The sort of touch a girl could get used to, should get used to. 

It came crashing down when she saw the clock. “Is that right?” he followed her eye line, nodding with a furrowed brow, then starting a bit when she all but fell off of his bed and rustled around for her clothes. She didn’t even know where she was, Dany was probably going to kill her, and it’s not like she could even explain herself when her nephew was there. 

The man sat up in the bed, feeling around on the nightstand, then fumbling he slid his glasses on. “Is everything ok?” Baffled and naked was a good look for him, good enough to distract her for a moment as she slid on her dress from the night before, conservative enough for brunch, she would have to borrow some talcum powder for her hair, he nodded when she asked if she could. 

“And toothpaste?” Her dentist would cringe at the technique, but desperate times. His bathroom is surprisingly clean in the light of day, and she wished she hadn’t wasted the meeting on a one night stand when he pulled a packaged toothbrush from the cupboard. She could tell he wanted to say something, acknowledging his gaze with a lift of her brow in the mirror. 

“If you give me a second to get dressed I can take you home.” He said in a rough voice. “Or wherever.” His shrug was supposed to be casual, but she could see the curiosity in his eyes. 

That would lead to more questions, no she could catch a cab, really if she was close enough to downtown she could walk. With a clean face, and hair pulled into an upbeat ponytail she made her way back to his room. She wanted to call him Jon, could feel his name on the tip of her tongue but didn’t want to embarrass herself if she was wrong. Instead she made a show of rooting through her bag for her phone, and standing when she could feel him looking at her. 

“I’ll walk you out,” gruff voice was still gentle. “If I give you my number will you call?” He wondered at the door, speaking more to his hands than to her face. She handed her phone to him, trying not to tap her foot out of habit. He was just being nice, he handed her phone back without even texting himself on it so he would have her number as well. Even though she knew they wouldn’t see each other again, really she knew guys worth seeing didn’t try to date their one night stands, she felt her heart sink. Another time this all could have worked out. Not now, so she kissed his cheek and walked away. 

When she walked down the three flights she pulled up a map, and knew if she hurried she’d be right on time to meet Dany. Sansa nearly jogged down the busy streets of Kings Landing to get to the Dragon Pit. Her friend was waiting, tapping away on her phone until she saw Sansa approach and set it aside. Dany stood to hug her, pulling away to observe her, “you’re late.”

“It’s eleven on the nose.” Sansa insisted, patting her hair self consciously. “Right on time.”

“Late for you,” Dany said knowingly, then craned her neck to look behind Sansa’s ear, “is that a hickey?” Sansa’s hand jumped up in alarm, “gotcha, sit down tell me about the guy.”

“I thought you were bringing your nephew.” Sansa said, curious, and trying to change the subject.

“He’s trying to cancel on us.” She said, clearly displeased. “I think you two would really hit it off, unless this guy you met-“

“Why would I hit it off with your nephew?” Sansa almost scoffed, frowning when Dany looked taken aback. “I thought we were babysitting or something.”

Dany’s laugh concerned her, though she was relieved that her comment hadn’t been taken as an insult. “My older brother you remember Rhaegar,” Sansa _certainly_ remembered Dany’s oldest brother, “my parents had me so old, Jon and I are closer to siblings than we are aunt and nephew.”

The phone started to buzz on the table, Dany snatched it up in frustration. Sansa knew the sound of Dany getting her way, and she knew the call would certainly end with that. Her friend was trying to set her up with her brother’s son, her handsome brother who dabbled in music, and poetry. He had a son who was close to her in age? And she was at brunch looking like she woke up in a stranger’s bed. This was her lot in life, this was her luck.

Across from her Dany downed her mimosa, signaling for another, “he’s on his way; I swear between the two of you I’ll find the bottom of the mimosas today.”

“Maybe another time-“

“No, I’m going to Essos for half the year in a few days. It has to be now, between the two of you it would never happen without my intervention.” Sighing Sansa sipped at her sparkling water. She asked Dany about her plans for travel, what she was going to do, and see, if she still had the number of that Dothraki biker from her last trip. They chatted idly, Sansa needed to get some food into her, but it would be rude to order before Dany’s nephew arrived. “There he is,” she said delightedly, rising again to embrace him.

Sansa’s breath caught in her chest when she saw _him_. Flannel rolled up, glasses slipping down the bridge of his nose, and that beard. Her heart started to race, his eyes had been on her since he got to the table, shocked as she was. Dany smiled gesturing for Sansa to join them, “Sansa this is-“

“Jon,” then she really blushed when Dany’s eyes darted to her face, then back to Jon’s, so obvious, “I mean-“

“Seriously?” she said, more outraged that they met without her influence than anything else, “you weren’t going to come today because you were sulking about Sansa?” Jon looked incredibly endearing with a blush, his eyes darted to hers very obviously embarrassed to be called out. “And you,” Dany turned on Sansa, “you were late because…” Sansa nodded knowing how obviously red she herself was. “I knew you two would need my help,” she said lifting her hand for the waiter, “and I knew I would get to the bottom of the mimosas too.” 

All through their meal Sansa felt the warmth of Jon beside her, knowing how warm his skin was through the fabric. Her fingers itched to reach for him, had he really been sulking because of her? Maybe he really did want a chance to know her. Her eyes lifted to meet his, smiling when she saw he was looking at her too. Their fingers brushed, and she felt like she was in high school all over again. 

Dany gave them knowing looks throughout, hugging each of them tight as they parted ways. “He’s hard to scare away once he gets to know you, but you have to let him in.” Dany pressed her forehead to Sansa’s, “promise you will?”

Sansa looked to where Jon shuffled in place, and nodded. Dany squeezed her hand, “I’ll send you a postcard, yeah?”

And then they were alone, “can I- I mean, do you want me to walk you home?”

Of all the things that scared her most, strangers knowing where she lived was up there. Maybe he noticed that earlier, when she deflected. Dany wouldn’t ask her to trust someone who would hurt her on purpose, she knew what it was like. And for the first time, in what felt like a very long time, Sansa nodded, taking a chance. Jon’s smile was bright, and she knew he understood her hesitations when he extended his arm but let her lead the way.


	2. midnight cowards

Jon waited outside of her apartment complex, sending her a text to let her know he was there, but no rush. He wiped his palms on his jeans, no reason to be nervous. Only Sansa was so quick, and cool, and god she was pretty too; three dates in and the latter only seemed magnified. If waking up to her in his arms hadn’t made her beauty apparent, the way she spoke had. She was charming and sincere; he liked the way she leaned into her palm when they talked, and when he tried his hand at a joke she giggled, he’d never known someone to actually make that sound. 

He wasn’t much of a talker, growing up in the Targaryen shadow would do that to anyone, usually it didn’t bother him. When he was with her he wished he was more verbose; he knew when people looked at them together they were wondering why such a woman was sitting with him, he wondered the same. If Dany hadn’t gotten involved he knew he never would have heard from her again, but Dany was across the Narrow Sea an excuse would have been too easy. Only Sansa didn’t invent an excuse when he walked her home, still smelling her on his skin. 

“Hey, sorry I was running a little behind today,” she didn’t reach for his hand, but grazed his little finger with hers, an gesture he’d grown familiar with. He looped his fingers with hers, loosely, taking pleasure in the way her pink lips turned up in a smile.

He wanted to tell her pay her a compliment, smooth like Egg could, poetic like his father. “Pretty,” he heard himself mumble, the exact opposite of how he wished he could sound. Sansa’s blue eyes darted up, probably thinking she missed half the words, and when the opportunity came to amend, to turn a great phrase all he could say was, “you’re always pretty.”

Her thanks was so soft, if he hadn’t been chastising himself for the words he’d have thought he paid her the sweetest compliment in the world. She went to smooth her hair, raising their linked hands and a giggle bubbled past her lips when she realized it. Their hands fell, still looped, and she leaned into his arm. Progress.

She never reached across the table to steal his fries the way Val used to, or ordered a fancy glass of wine just to be ironic like Ygritte. Instead she slid her fork into the fish on her plate, offering him a sample, doing the same with the vegetables on the plate, lipstick staining the rim of her wine glass, she was careful to sip from the same spot every time. 

Sansa talked about her siblings affectionately, all four of them, telling him different stories from when she was younger. His weren’t nearly as funny, or warm, but the listened avidly, drawing more out of him than he expected. It was while she was telling him about their family camping trips, and pushing her oldest brother’s mattress into the lake, that he heard himself say something even more stupid than pretty, 

“I”d love to meet them,” 

God, he didn’t even realize he said it until her fingers froze on the rim of the glass where they’d been spinning idly. The opposite of taking it slow, the opposite of letting her call the shots like Dany suggested; somehow things had been going so well and it would dip into awkward conversation, she’d say goodbye when dinner was over and he’d never hear from her again. 

Her eyes had darted down at his words, but they crept up after a long, quiet minute. “Do you mean that?”

Jon nodded, no use lying. “Not tomorrow,” he added, like it would help. She picked at her plate lips turned down in a thoughtful pout. The silence hadn’t felt like this since she was leaving his apartment the first morning after they met. He looked across the room for their waiter, Sansa seemed surprised by that, apologizing, hands darting to her lap, eyes downcast too. 

He hadn’t meant to make her feel bad, if anything he was trying to give her an easy out, just like the first day. She tried to smile at the waiter when he came to their table, but Jon saw how false it was. “I made things awkward,” Jon said, “I didn’t think.”

It wasn’t until his card was taken that she said anything at all. “I’m not used to this,” she murmured, “you’re too honest.” 

“I’m sorry?” he offered. 

“Please don’t be, it just takes some getting used to.” Her smile met her eyes when she said the words. Still he was nervous when they left, unsure of where to go next. Sansa took the lead, chatting almost as easily as she had before he revealed too much. She leaned into him again, glowing like an ember under the streetlights. It was easy to see why Dany cared for her, Sansa gave all of herself to the people in her life, people she trusted. 

He didn’t realize where they were walking until they came to a stop in front of her building. His heart dropped, knowing the night was about to end. “I have a confession.” Sansa said softly, only continuing when he looked at her, intrigued. “I was running late because I was cleaning up. I have rules though.”

“Rules?” He wondered dumbly.

“You can’t come here without warning me; no surprise visits, you always have to call ahead,” she began and he realized what this meant, “you can’t come here when I’m not here either.” She was inviting him up, she knew she was going to invite him up before he left his apartment. His heart started to race, “I just want to spend more time with you.” It was a bold statement coming from her, he noticed how close she kept her cards even with idle chatter. 

“Ok,” he nodded. “You know you don’t have to do this if you aren’t ready right?” He didn’t want her to feel like she owed it to him. God he would hate himself if that was the reason she was doing this.

“I trust you.” She said softly, “please let me prove it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> because Alice of Alonso asked so nicely, here's some more of this. I'm on [tumblr](http://www.sansapotter.tumblr.com), where I can always be persuaded to continue things apparently lol.

**Author's Note:**

> title from Rooms on Fire, by Stevie nicks. and I'm on [tumblr](http://www.sansapotter.tumblr.com)


End file.
